JPO, Ninu Zammit and Jesmond Mugliett refuse to drop libel suits against Labour in outright defiance of secret talks to cancel €1 million defamation ordeal
Karl Stagno-Navarra Two former Nationalist ministers and one PN backbencher are refusing to have their libel suits dropped as the PN and Labour are engaged in secret talks to clinch a “blanket agreement” to cancel all libel suits filed during the 2008 general elections and the 2009 European elections.
Former ministers Jesmond Mugliett, Ninu Zammit, and Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando have told MaltaToday they will not be accepting any invitation to drop the suits they lodged against Alfred Sant and the Labour media.
Former transport minister Jesmond Mugliett insisted he made it clear with PN secretary-general Paul Borg Olivier that “no generic declaration can ever be considered as redress for somebody who has suffered malicious slander.”
Of the same opinion was former infrastructure minister Ninu Zammit, who insisted that “whoever had fun throwing mud at me must now clean up his own mess.”
Pullicino Orlando, who filed a libel suit against Alfred Sant after the former Labour leader revealed that the MP had rented protected land at Mistra for an open-air disco, said he had indicated to Borg Olivier that he was “not prepared to drop the libel case… I would be in a position to do so only if Sant were to publically apologise for slandering me.”
Alfred Sant declined any comment on the ongoing talks between the party secretary-generals and their legal counsels to cancel out libel suits costing at least €1 million in expenses and damages.
Both Borg Olivier and PL acting secretary-general Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi have delined to comment about the negotiations, but senior party officials told MaltaToday the talks have reached an advanced stage.
Presiding magistrates are said to have already been receiving formal notes from MPs’ lawyers declaring the cases to be either resolved or in the process of being resolved. The notes, many of which were filed before Magistrates Silvio Meli, Joseph Apap Bologna and Consuelo Scerri-Herrera state that an “amicable” agreement has been reached between the sides.
Former minister John Dalli, who was recently appointed European Commissioner, has reportedly dropped five libel suits he had filed against Sant and Labour media, shortly before taking up office in Brussels.
MaltaToday is informed that 58 libel suits filed in the run-up to the 2008 general election, and another 19 filed during the 2009 campaign for the European Parliament elections are under “review” by PN and PL lawyers.
The libel suits under review are estimated to total almost €1 million in potential legal costs and damages: a figure which both parties cannot afford to pay up, with mounting debts forcing them to retrench.
MEPs David Casa (PN) and Edward Scicluna (PL) who filed libel suits against each other’s party media, are reported to have been approached by party officials to consider dropping their cases. They have so far not forwarded any reply.
In 2008, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi filed a number of libel suits against former labour leader Alfred Sant for calling him a “liar” during public speeches, while the entire Cabinet sued Sant over “corruption” remarks he had made.
Individual ministers also filed a litany of libel suits against Alfred Sant, Labour MPs and the Labour party media over allegations of wrongdoings while in office, while Labour equally filed a series of libel suits against the PN media and its MPs.
The hypocrisy of the secret talks, as revealed by MaltaToday last Wednesday didn’t go unnoticed: both parties are unwilling to settle libel suits they filed against the independent media.
While the parties realise that they are unable to meet the financial burden that such time-consuming actions bring, there has been no bona fide attempt to settle frivolous suits made against the independent media.
MediaToday managing editor Saviour Balzan stressed that “instead of pushing legislators pushing to reform the press laws, once again the political parties are engaged in secret horse-trading.”
The Sunday Times editor Steve Mallia also commented in this regard, stressing that, “it would be far beneficial to the general public if the two parties got together and discussed reforming local libel laws and other provisions in the Press Act, which are heavily slanted against the independent press in this country.”
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